Improvement in electric annunciators and fire-alarm conductors



E. A. HIL'L.

ELECTRIC ANNUHCIA'TOR AND FIRE ALARM COND'U'CI'ORS.

vI Io.176,784;, Patentedfi'ay 2,1876.

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UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

EDWARD A. HILL, OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS.

IMPROVEMENT IN ELECTRIC ANNUNCIATORS AND FIRE-ALARM CONDUCTORS.

Specification forming part of Letters Patent No. 176,784, dated May 2,1876 application filed April 21, 1873.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, EDWARD A. HILL, of Chicago, in the county of Cookand State of lllinois, have invented certain Improvements in Means forInclosing and Running Wires to Form the Circuits of ElectricalAnnunciators and Fire-Alarms, of which the following is a specification:

There has hitherto been great difficulty experienced in fitting abuilding (hotel or dwelling-house) with the wires to constitute thenumerous circuits required by electrical annunciators and fire orburglar alarms. It is desirable that the wires shall be concealed fromview, guarded from accidental injury, and protected from moisture; thatthey shall be always readily accessible for purposes of electrical testsand to repair breaks; and also that they shall be so disposed that newor additional wires may be supplied to form additional circuits.

To provide a means for readily accomplishing these several results isthe object of this invention.

I propose to provide a series of tubes or pipes broken at each turning,and at intervals along their lengths, by open spaces, to afford accessto the bundle of several wires which are run through said tubes. Thesetubes or pipes are laid throughout the building, preferably supported bythe lathing, before the plastering is applied, and under the flooringbefore it is put down.

The object being to conceal or cover the pipes, they may be put throughthe walls or between the walls, or between the floors and ceilings, inmanner desired, it being only necessary that the breaks in said pipesshould be accessible through pockets or traps or other apertures in thefloor, ceiling, or walls opposite said breaks, all of which will behereinafter more fully explained.

The accompanying drawing, whichforms a part of this specification,represents said series of pipes, or a portion thereof, as applied.

In the said drawing, A represents a portion of a lathed wall before theplastering is applied. B is a section of the flooring. G U C G areseveral of 'a series of small tubes or pipes secured to the lathing, orelsewhere, wherever it may be desired to run the wires of the annuciatoror other circuits. The several tubes are separated from each other by aninterval. The interval at D is for the purpose of taking out one of theWires and breaking it to form terminals for key, which may be placed bythe side of the break.

The breaks at E E are to accommodate the bend or change of directionfrom a horizontal to a perpendicular or vertical direction.

The break D may be covered or concealed by the plate of the key, and thebreaks E are below the flooring B and concealed thereby. The flooring atthis point is cut and a removable trap, H, inserted, to form what istechnically termed a pocket to render the break accessible. These pipes,in series, are extended throughout the entire building, with breaks atevery turning and at every place where a key isv to be inserted, andalso with breaks when proceeding vertically at every floor, and in everyplace where they can be properly concealed, and yet be made accessible.The wires to form the numerous circuits are pushed through these pipesand led to their destination.

Where a series of rooms occur one above another the wires for the wholeseries are run up a single pipe series extending to the uppermost.

The single return-Wire of the circuit, common to the whole of the otherwires, is inclosed with the smaller wires of the separate circuits, sothat the circuits may be tested at any of the breaks.

Wires for new circuits may be added by simply pushing them through thetubes, commencing at one of the breaks and continuing through all thetubes.

The wires are indicated in the drawing by the letter K, and are severalin number, to supply the number of circuits required.

Having thus described my invention, that which I claim as new, anddesire to secure by Letters Patent, is-

The combination, with the wires of a series of circuits, of a series ofinclosing tubes or pipes arranged within the walls or floors, either orboth, of a building, and separated from each other by breaks accessiblefrom the exterior of the walls or floors, substantially as and for thepurposes set forth.

EDWARD A. HILL. Witnesses:

J. W. MUNDAY, HEINRICH F. BRUNS.

